The benefits of proper oral hygiene upon the health of an individual's teeth and gums is well known and documented. Over recent years it has been shown that good oral hygiene on the part of infants, babies and small children can be advantageous from the perspective of preventing tooth decay and maintaining healthy gums. The development of good oral hygiene practices and techniques for young children also tends to develop oral hygiene habits that are carried with the child throughout his or her lifetime.
Prior to the emergence of teeth in an infant, gently rubbing, brushing or scrubbing the infant's gums will serve as a means to help dislodge bacteria and help to maintain the health of the gums. Gently rubbing a child's gums will also provide a soothing effect to gums that may become inflamed when a child is teething. When the teeth eventually emerge from the gums into the oral cavity, the enamel surfaces of the teeth will benefit from brushing through the removal of plaque and other debris that may eventually lead to inflamed gums and/or tooth decay.
Traditionally, the teeth and gums of infants and very young children (typically under the age of 1) are cleaned through gently wiping with gauze or a washcloth. When the child is very young wiping the child's gums with gauze or a washcloth can be a difficult task. As the child gets older, and particularly when teeth begin to erupt, children typically become non-cooperative, making the task of cleaning their teeth and gums difficult, if not in some cases next to impossible. An older infant may refuse to open his or her mouth to allow a parent or caregiver access to the teeth and gums, particularly when the child is teething and the gums are sore and inflamed. Some children also exhibit a tendency to bite the finger of a parent or caregiver who is attempting to clean the child's gums.
In an attempt to address the issue of how to effectively clean the teeth and gums of an infant or small child, others have developed a variety of different infant toothbrushes, such as those described under U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,334,231; 5,571,140 and 4,621,387. While such devices are effective to varying degrees, they are in most instances designed for older children and not smaller infants.